Patriots' Targets Show Just How Good Drake Maye Was in Win

It was far from a perfect outing for New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye in his postseason debut.

The second-year signal caller threw for 17-for-29 and accounted for 334 total yards. His passing touchdown to tight end Hunter Henry was the game’s lone touchdown, and his three turnovers hampered the Patriots’ offense from doing much more.

But it was his ability to get everyone involved — from his 1,000-yard receiver to his fullback — that helped the Patriots knock off the Los Angeles Chargers 16-3 in the second of three AFC Wild Card games.

Maye connected with nine of his teammates for completions, finding Kayshon Boutte (four receptions), Rhamondre Stevenson (three), Henry (three), Stefon Diggs (two), Efton Chism III (one), TreVeyon Henderson (one), Kyle Williams (one), DeMario Douglas (one) and Jack Westover (one). His lone skill player teammate that didn’t record a catch — tight end Austin Hooper — was targeted twice.

It was a concerted effort by Maye to try and spread the wealth.

Maye Connected With Nine Different Pass Catchers

“Yeah, I think the biggest thing about that room is they care about each other,” Maye said postgame. “(Wide receivers) coach (Todd) Downing, those guys in that room, they do a great job of blocking the run game, doing little details right. We knew it was going to be a details game with how much zone they played. Those guys are fired up in the locker room to win. Everybody made some big plays.”

Maye was able to improve from the first half to the second. Though he himself said it wasn’t his best game, he became the sixth quarterback in NFL history to throw for more than 250 yards, rush for more than 50 yards and throw a touchdown in their playoff debut. It certainly helped that players like Stevenson and Boutte had major catch-and-run contributions.

Jan 11, 2026; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) jogs off the field after defeating the Los Angeles Chargers in an AFC Wild Card Round game at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

“Proud of that group for how they've grown up, allowed me to grow with them,” Maye said. “They're great players for us. Nobody complains. They all want the ball. I don't blame them because they are all good with it in their hands.”

Maye’s head coach echoed that sentiment the following day, praising the skill players’ ability to help their young quarterback dive into this offense headfirst. Mixing and matching formations, including extra linemen, has helped.

“I think that being able to mix up the personnel groups is something that we've tried to do, that other teams try to do, no different than the Chargers,” Mike Vrabel told reporters.

With next week’s opponent still up in the air, Maye will look to duplicate his passing efforts against a new team.

What will stay the same is how Gillette Stadium treats its MVP candidate in the process.

“Kind of running out of that tunnel with the crowd, that was a cool moment. I kind of was running off the field like, man, that was pretty sweet, listening to the crowd,” Maye said. “That is it, Playoff football. That's what we said at the beginning of the season, we want to play home playoff games in the playoffs. That's what we did. We are 1-0. We got to go to the next one.”

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